The "Greatest American"

[Karlifornia]

So, some TV channel hosted a program called "The Greatest American", where the public could vote on 100 choices to decide who the greatest American of all time was. No, this is not a joke. A cable television station actually tried to turn human achievement into a popularity contest. If you didn't see the results, take a guess as to who won. You will not guess correctly-I guarantee it.

.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.

Ronald Reagan was voted the greatest American ever. Wow. I'm definitely not implying that Reagan was a bad guy. For all I know he was the cat' pajamas, but to say he was better than George Washington, Abe Lincoln, Ben Franklin, Thomas Edison, Marting Luther King, FDR, Teddy Roosevelt, john Marshall, or countless others I'm too drunk to name...it's unreal. It's only a TV show...It's only a TV show....It's only a TV show......

By the way, TOM CRUISE was on this list.

[Peregrine]

I agree that Reagan seems like a silly choice, but I have to say that no matter who was named, everyone would be saying "But what about person X,Y, and Z?" It's a very silly premise for a show.

[MIJB#19]

At least you Americans didn't vote on a politician that never got into politics because he was murdered a week before the elections. Not to mention that he clearly only won because this murder happened less than two years before the 'Grootste Nederlander' show was aired on tv.

By the way, I would have never guessed Ronald Reagan.

[Vinatieri for Prez]

I guessed Don Knotts. Did he finish at least in the top 5? His role as Ralph Furley I think inspired all Americans to be the best damn American they could be.

[korme]

i'm the greatest american of all-time

[NoMyths]

Ridiculous. But I guess it goes to show you: no matter how great of an American you try to be, the rest of the country ain't going to notice. :)

A sampling from my own personal (and incomplete) list, in no particular order:
Abraham Lincoln
Benjamin Franklin
Frederick Douglass
Thomas Jefferson
Martin Luther King Jr.
George Washington
Alexander Hamilton

[Northwood_DK]

Dont forget this great man!!!

He gets my vote.

http://xo.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/homer_simpson.gif

[kingnebwsu]

I guessed Michael Jordan...but I guess not everyone is a Bulls fan ;)

[Peregrine]

Homer's definitely a fine choice!

[Izulde]

Benjamin Franklin was an arrogant asshat of a womanizer who had tons of affairs and Jefferson slept with his slaves.

Alexander Hamilton was most definitely pimp, though.

[Northwood_DK]

I know this is from 2003 but this is what the world thinks.

Homer Simpson, the lovable head of the Simpson family, has been nominated the greatest American ever in an online poll ahead of the BBC-led global debate, What The World Thinks of America.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/wtwta/2997144.stm

VOTE RESULTS
Who is the greatest American?
Homer Simpson
47.17%
Abraham Lincoln
9.67%
Martin Luther King Jnr
8.54%
Mr T
7.83%
Thomas Jefferson
5.68%
George Washington
5.12%
Bob Dylan
4.71%
Benjamin Franklin
4.10%
Franklin D Roosevelt
3.65%
Bill Clinton
3.53%
37,102 Votes Cast
Results are indicative and may not reflect public opinion

[Peregrine]

Homer Simpson has the work ethic that made America great:

(Homer talking to his son about work)
I want to share something with you:
The three little sentences that will get you through life.
Number 1: Cover for me.
Number 2: Oh, good idea, Boss!
Number 3: It was like that when I got here.

[cthomer5000]

http://www.tripletsandus.com/80s/shows/greatest.jpg
.

[Joe]

where was Donald Rumsfeld on this list?

[Easy Mac]

http://www.rjsonline.net/%7Ecehicks/ic7.jpg.

[Bee]

I'm not the least bit surprised. In fact, when my wife and I saw this show advertised, I told her the public would pick Reagan #1. I'm surprised everyone else didn't expect it considering the type of people that vote in these things and the recent hoopla over Reagan's death.

[BigJohn&TheLions]

I guess the reason that Bush didn't make #1 is that he is the greatest person ever to walk God's green earth.

[SFL Cat]

I guess the reason that Bush didn't make #1 is that he is the greatest person ever to walk God's green earth.

Why settle for Greatest American? Bush is holding out for Sainthood.

Reagan is a fine choice IMO. Definitely not my first choice, but a fine one nonetheless.

[flere-imsaho]

It's a shame Dwight Eisenhower will never show up on these lists. I guess being a major influence behind winning WWII and implementing the Interstate Freeway system doesn't count for much.

[Peregrine]

Hmm, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, or Tom Cruise. It's a tough choice. Would our country really be worth living in without Mission: Impossible 2? ;)

[Radii]

By the way, TOM CRUISE was on this list.


don't forget Michael the Molester Jackson...

[CHEMICAL SOLDIER]

It's a shame Dwight Eisenhower will never show up on these lists. I guess being a major influence behind winning WWII and implementing the Interstate Freeway system doesn't count for much.
Not to mention a damn good president as well. Maybe the best in the past 55 years.

[oliegirl]

radii and I watched this show and although we were both surprised that Reagan won - I thought it would be Lincoln - we both agreed that the American public is fickle and very short-minded. If another "great" president would have died after Reagan, he would have a had a very good chance of winning. Also, most people who voted (like 85% of the voting was done online) aren't going to stop and think about who they are voting for - they aren't going to focus on the long term effects of the other people in the top 5 (Washington, Franklin, Lincoln and MLK) - they are going to think - "Oh Reagan was cool - he defeated communism so we don't have to be afraid of Nuclear War any longer" and cast their vote for him.

I was disappointed to see how many of the people on there were entertainers and athletes. With the exception of Ali, Armstrong, Jesse Owens and maybe one other I can't think of now, athletes don't deserve to be in the company of most of the people on the list. And entertainers? Besides people like Bob Hope who truly used their celebrity to do something good and made a lasting impact, I don't think any of them deserved to be on the list.

[andy m]

i am gobsmacked that it wasn't awarded to Michael Moore.

[HomerJSimpson]

Woo-hoo! I'm the greatest American! USA! USA!

[RPI-Fan]

I agree that Reagan seems like a silly choice, but I have to say that no matter who was named, everyone would be saying "But what about person X,Y, and Z?" It's a very silly premise for a show.

Actually, at least from TV Execs perspective, that is EXACTLY what they were hoping for out of this series.

~rpi-fan

[Johnny93g]

So, some TV channel hosted a program called "The Greatest American", where the public could vote on 100 choices to decide who the greatest American of all time was. No, this is not a joke. A cable television station actually tried to turn human achievement into a popularity contest. If you didn't see the results, take a guess as to who won. You will not guess correctly-I guarantee it.


MARK-PAUL GOSSELAR?

[ahbrady]

don't forget Michael the Molester Jackson...

Dr. Phil made the top 100 and Madonna was in the top 50. That's just sad.

[JPhillips]

No one has as organized a support group as Reagan. The Reagan Legacy Projetc, headed by Grover Norquist, has the mission to immortalize Reagan in as many ways as possible. They have either already succeeded or are very close to having something named after Reagan in every county in the U.S. They are also the driving force behind putting Reagan on the dime and putting Reagan on Rushmore.

Make no mistake, Reagan would have done well on his own, but the Reagan Legacy Project worked very hard to make sure Reagan was #1. Its a bigger venue, but its no different than liberals or conservatives flooding a CNN daily poll to "prove" their politics is superior.

[ShaqFu]

I was surprised by Reagan, but given that the list tended to lean heavily towards the 20th Century, I'm not too surprised. I thought that Washington might be a shoe-in. And, going on the basis of 20th Century, I was thinking MLK.

[KevinNU7]

It's a shame Dwight Eisenhower will never show up on these lists. I guess being a major influence behind winning WWII and implementing the Interstate Freeway system doesn't count for much.
He was in my Top 10, and the show actually had him in the Top 100.

[Chas in Cinti]

MARK-PAUL GOSSELAR?

It's all right...
Cause you're saved by the....
It's all right...
Cause you're saved by the....
It's all right, You're Saved By the Bell!!!

The College Years Rocked, BTW...

-Chas

[timmynausea]

It's all right...
Cause you're saved by the....
It's all right...
Cause you're saved by the....
It's all right, You're Saved By the Bell!!!

The College Years Rocked, BTW...

-Chas

Standing at the edge of tomorrow
And it's all up to me how far I go

[sabotai]

I saw a poll not too long ago on who was the greatest president. #1 George W. Bush. #2 was Bill Clinton.

People are stupid.

[SFL Cat]

I saw a poll not too long ago on who was the greatest president. #1 George W. Bush. #2 was Bill Clinton.

People are stupid.

*waits for someone to post..."yeah stupid, because everyone knows Clinton was better than Bush."*

[WSUCougar]

Greatest at what?

[SFL Cat]

It's a shame Dwight Eisenhower will never show up on these lists. I guess being a major influence behind winning WWII and implementing the Interstate Freeway system doesn't count for much.

Nope...Ike looses points because he didn't come clean about the aliens.
:)

[CHEMICAL SOLDIER]

The greatest American I think is: General Douglas Mc Arthur.

[st.cronin]

The greatest American I think is: General Douglas Mc Arthur.

Well, if you mean because he didn't overthrow the US government when pretty much everybody wanted him to, sure... I can see your point. Barely.

[Izulde]

It's hard to choose the single greatest American. I find myself wanting to partition it into categories first and selecting the best out of groups before I consider who was the greatest.

[CHEMICAL SOLDIER]

http://www.rjsonline.net/%7Ecehicks/ic7.jpg.
Everyone knows it's a toss up between General Hawk and Duke. Snake Eyes shows America's seedy side. :)

[Joe]

Dr. Phil made the top 100 and Madonna was in the top 50. That's just sad.

Isn't Madonna british now?

[Mac Howard]

They had a similar vote in the UK, I believe, on the Greatest Brit. There was a similarly depressing result - second was Princess Diana, bettering the likes of Shakespeare, Isaac Newton, Nelson, Elizabeth 1st, Winston Churchill etc

But even more disappointing for some of you guys on here would be the first choice: Charles Darwin ;)

But one reassuring characteristic - not too many politicians :)

[SelzShoes]

We didn't watch, but when we saw one of the ads, the wife made a great arguement for Rosa Parks.

[Buccaneer]

Most Americans do not know their history and if they do, it only goes back to the 1980s. :(

[ahbrady]

They had a similar vote in the UK, I believe, on the Greatest Brit. There was a similarly depressing result - second was Princess Diana, bettering the likes of Shakespeare, Isaac Newton, Nelson, Elizabeth 1st, Winston Churchill etc

But even more disappointing for some of you guys on here would be the first choice: Charles Darwin ;)

But one reassuring characteristic - not too many politicians :)

That's surprising to me. I don't think there's anyway that Darwin would be nearly that high on the Greatest American list if he would have been from the States.

The Diana thing doesn't surprise me though. It's good to know that we aren't the only ones that are completely ignorant of our country's history.

[Vinatieri for Prez]

When I think of all that embodies courage and the fight for freedom in a critical time in American history (as well as an incredible inspiration to fellow citizens), I can think of nobody better than Dr. MLK. So he comes first, just before Don Knotts, with Cindy Crawford in third.

[EagleFan]

I figured it would either be HA or HM, toss-up between the two.

[judicial clerk]

They had a similar vote in the UK, I believe, on the Greatest Brit. There was a similarly depressing result - second was Princess Diana, bettering the likes of Shakespeare, Isaac Newton, Nelson, Elizabeth 1st, Winston Churchill etc

But even more disappointing for some of you guys on here would be the first choice: Charles Darwin

But one reassuring characteristic - not too many politicians Excuse me while I hurl. There have been many amazing brit's throughout history, but not only should Isaac Newton be named greatest british momma's boy ever, he should be named best human ever (religious figures notwithstanding).

Ronald Reagan would be wayyy down on my list of greatest americans. I am thinking I would probably put G.W. at the top because he got the ball rolling and set the right precedent. How many representative democracies have we seen fail because those in power decide that they don't want to give up power.

In 150 years, JFK will probably be considered the greatest American. No, not because he banged Marilyn Monroe or he kept missles out of Cuba, or started the Green Beret's, but because he is probably the single person most responsible for getting humans going on space travel.

[Easy Mac]

I was about to say, if the criteria was banging Marilyn Monroe, I mean DiMaggio had a 56 game hitting streak... and Arthur Miller was a hell of a playwright.